


Splendid Magic

by Ollyoxalls (CharmingWithNoTitle)



Series: A Splendid Thing [1]
Category: Strange Magic (2015)
Genre: Blood Loss, Death, F/F, F/M, Past Character Death, for additional sibling, this fic is secretly titled add sib on my comp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-21
Updated: 2016-03-01
Packaged: 2018-05-22 11:37:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6077913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CharmingWithNoTitle/pseuds/Ollyoxalls
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three women struggle with family, loss, and love. Three sisters grow, learn, and challenge the world together. Three princesses fight societal standards, outdated politics and a few wild animals along the way. Having an elder sister to help guide Marianne and Dawn, allows everyone to try to achieve what they want and helps them get what they need. (basically what if dawn and marianne had an even elder sister to be heir and take the weight of the thrown off their shoulders and be a buffer/filter for their father. y'know. big sibling shit)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Its a New Dawn

            The entire kingdom waited with bated breath for at least a fortnight, as the queen was due to deliver any day now. Two days late, the court physicians deliberated whether they should induce labour for the queen's safety.

            The third night after the royal babe was expected, screams ripped through the castle like a terrible storm. The king held his wife’s hand in those last moments, and carried the woman who had blessed him with three beautiful daughters from her bed of blood.

            The castle rang with silence for only a moment after the tragedy. In the void of despair, a shrill cry reached for a warmth it had yet to know. Small hands reached towards this new life to comfort it. Heedless of the babe’s wailing, her eldest sister, Selene, began to hum a simple melody. Mumbling words she knew second hand through her own silent tears. The blonde babe’s tiny hand wrapped around her sister’s thumb; the baby’s breath slowed until she fell asleep.

            Another small child’s hand sought Selene; amber eyes, red with despair, searched Selene's for understanding. Selene focused on her words and lowered her pitch to allow Marianne’s toddler tenor to carry the melody of a song they both knew better than the concept it professed of.

 _Once on a high_  
_And windy hill_  
_In the morning mist_  
_Two lovers kissed_  
_And the world stood still_  
_Then your fingers touched_  
_My silent heart_  
_And taught it how to sing_  
_Yes, true love's_  
_A many_ splendored thing 

            Selene heard a chambermaid gossiping- the king had carried his queen's limp form from the birth room himself. Selene had no idea how accurate this was but she was grateful that when she snuck into the room, she didn't have to see the lifeless body of her mother. The room was empty but the air felt heavy with the smell of salt and metal.

            She slowly walked towards the last place her mother had been alive and saw what had killed her. Her mother’s linens were darkly stained with drying blood. The featherbed dipped in the middle where it was most sodden with her mothers life force. The darkness of the shut room cast shadows that turned the blood black.

            Selene felt angry, disgusted, and heartbroken all at once. She suddenly felt like she was suffocating and desperately dragged the heavy double doors open to the balcony. She leapt from the stone ledge and glided down to the grounds below on her own black and red wigns.

            The king stood on his own balcony and watched his eldest daughter's flight. Her anguished scream echoed sinisterly throughout the kingdom, but who was he to scold his grieving children Sighing dejectedly, he summoned his now middle daughter’s nursing sprites to bring his little girl to him. Selene had somewhat retained her cool exterior when he told her the fate of her mother. Loitering outside Dawn’s nursery earlier, he heard Selene’s sweet voice lulling her newest sister. He worried more about Marianne. The poor girl had yet to speak to him since the incident. The small girl poked her head through the ajar door and slowly walked into the room at her father’s beckoning gesture.

            She sat silently on a small flower while her father walked over to her mother’s now bare vanity. Opening a drawer, he pulled out a small white carved box. Holding it for a moment, he smiled to himself. Marianne looked pointedly at her feet when her father started walking back towards her. He placed the small box in his daughters even smaller hands and held his own over hers for a moment before pulling away.

            “Your mother and I had planned to give this to you and your sisters when you were all a lot older”, he looked distantly towards where Selene had flown.

            “We talked about-…well. We talked about a lot of things. We wanted to take you to meet her family one day. We wanted to take all of you, of course. Your mother though-she really wanted to show you especially, Marianne. I dont know why. I know she would have wanted you to have this. Her great-grandfather had them made for his daughters. Three princesses. Just like you and your sisters.” he paused a moment to watch the princess for a moment. The small girl leveled a look at the king that was much too stern for a toddler to be capable of. The king continued-

            “I want you to give these to your sisters. This is a very important task, Marianne.” He placed an encouraging hand on the small girls shoulder; reminiscent of a king and his guard, as opposed to a king and a princess. Marianne’s eyes narrowed in immediate determination. She jumped up and saluted her father as a soldier might and bolted from the room. Sneaking back in, she dipped into a bashful curtsy and crept back into the hall.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ahhhh this is basically garbage but i dont even care im just happy to write again. i swear theres a planned end to this. also someone please beta this. i cant even look at it by the time i post it so this is probably riddled with errors.


	2. Is it a Stable or a Kennel if its for a Guinea Pig?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marianne and Selene have a heart to heart over a literal pile of crap. Selene figures out what she wants to do Marianne's ball and Marianne is still trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life.   
> feat. bby!Dawn for .2 seconds.

Suitors from the farthest reaches of the farthest kingdoms filled every guest chamber in the castle. One particular suitor had set himself apart from all the rest by riding in on a tamed Guinea pig. The young knight riding the beast had been bold enough to propose to princess Selene during the welcome feast, to which she bluntly rejected. Her unflinching refusal was a cold bucket of water to the brash blond. Having never been rejected before, young Sir Roland only became more interested in the crown princess who promptly forgot about the entire proposal.

Selene was commonly found walking the grounds with a flightless Dawn; the young fairy filled the greenery with her sweet songs. As of late, however, an eager Roland would quickly accost Selene during these private moments. Her father had invited this stranger, among many others, to be a guest in their home. Roland repaid that kindness by aggressively invading her personal life in whatever possible.

His most embarrassing gesture was his declaration of undying loyalty and protection during her courtly proceedings. From then-on, whenever she held court in place of her father, Roland would stand close by with his hand on his pommel. He stood as if he were a member of the Royal guard and not some distant traveling knight. Selene wouldn't trust the gilded slug with a mud pit, let alone her life; or even worse, her kingdom. 

Even worse was when he interrupted her and Marianne's trading with the master at arms. She saw the way Marianne's face fell whenever Roland tried to earn Selene's favor. All Selene could do was clearly reject Roland, but Roland's determination only worsened Marianne's mood. Why Marianne saw anything but an empty-headed oaf, eluded Selene's reason. 

Regardless of Marianne's ignorance of shallowness, Selene only wanted happiness for her sister. The eldest sister struggled with an idea for Marianne's coming-out ball gift. Selene worried that nothing would heal the rift between them that some blond stranger caused.

In her attempts to evade Roland's pursuit, she found herself in the castle's kennels. There she found Marianne feeding Roland's beast in the nurturing way one might treat a child. Selene smiled as a gift idea came to her. She took advantage of Marianne's absent-mindedness and thought about the conversation she was about to have with her sister. 'The best big sister-gifts come with big sister-speeches.' A younger Marianne had once told her, a girl very much the same as the older one that stood before her now. Selene collected herself and broke the stillness of Marianne's moment.

"I didn't know you were so good with animals." Marianne stilled at Selene's voice but continued petting the animal without looking back.

"I didn't either. He kind of reminds me of Dawn. Before she could talk and sing. She would stare all day without saying a word but still tell you everything you wanted to know with just her eyes. But I do think Dawn cried more so I think the pig is winning. " Marianne replied smiling fondly at the memory of a baby Dawn.

"Don't say that in front of Dawn, she would probably cry." Selene said walking into Marianne's view.

"I'm not going to tell the child she reminds me of a Guinea pig. I'm not that mean. I mean I might tell her if she tattles to dad again but I wouldn't tell her needlessly." Marianne grinned mostly to herself.

"Ah yes only in retribution. How very benevolent of you, Princess Marianne.” Selene affected a formal tone.

“Maybe you should have been born first so you could have ruled the entire kingdom in light of your just wisdom. 'When your children misbehave, compare them to typically wild animals to put them in their place'. You would make a great ruler, Marianne" Selene stared dramatically into the distance as if envisioning such a future. Selene was obviously fishing for the origin Marianne’s emotional distance.

They had fought over the crown during Selene’s coming out party years ago. Marianne had only been 11 at the time but Selene could still recall Marianne’s screamed complaints vividly. Marianne’s concern hadn’t been baseless; they were typical of any second child. It was probably the sincerity of Marianne’s anger that had left such a lasting impression. Marianne hadn’t brought it up since, but Selene was sure that had more to do their father’s intervention as opposed to Selene’s reassurances.

Marianne peeked through her lashes at her sister, smirking. Selene grinned at her sister who returned with a matching smile of her own. Marianne moved her attention back to the animal's brushing, and chose her next words carefully.

"I don't think I could handle the obligations of being queen." Marianne said slowly, keeping her eyes fixed on the furry pet and the brush in her hands. Selene maintained a neutral expression; glad she was able to goad a heart-to-heart out of her sister.

"What obligations do you worry about?" Selene asked as directly as possible. Getting directly to the root of Marianne's anxiety seemed to be Selene's secret power. She was so used to picking a part her loved ones words that she no longer had to. Selene knew their meaning, even when they didn't.

"I worry about... Marriage. None of the suitors have shown a… personal interest in me. They're more likely to seek another 'audience with the king' than they are to actually propose to me." Marianne tried to undercut her sincerity with large gestures and a crooked grin all the sisters shared. Selene knew this was the moment she was waiting for. She let the area settle into silence for a moment before launching into a big-sister speech.

"Our father told me quite recently that ‘you will find love whenever you look for it, you just can't look too often or you'll ruin your odds of finding it’. He was obviously saying that it would be okay to marry without love because one day you'll look over and realize you've already found it." Selene paused to make eye contact with Marianne who was still tense with anxiety.

"That's terrible." Marianne responded, dejectedly lowering her gaze to the animal’s coat once again.

"I said the same. Actually I told him that prisoners sometimes think the same of other cell-mates." Selene replied smiling.

"Suffering with someone isn't the same as being in love with them. That's not healthy" Marianne nodded, not quite making eye contact.

"Our mother thankfully, would have agreed with us.” Selene offered, trying to gauge her sister’s reaction. Marianne’s ministrations with the beast stilled at the mention of their late mother.

“She told me once that love is everywhere whether you're looking or not and that’s why she thought it was better not to go looking for love. Her reasoning for not looking was that she knew she would never be able to recognize it and that fate understood those things better than she did. She said not to go looking for love because ‘you have a narrower view of the world than fate does’ and making hasty decisions would only bring a less lovely fate." 

"I don't know what that's supposed to mean." Marianne said sorrowfully, her misty eyes dropped to her feet, loss and frustration evident in her grimace.

"I always understood it to mean that good things will come to you with time and great things will happen when you are most challenged.” Marianne was unrelenting in her frustrated silence, prompting Selene to continue.

“It doesn’t matter” Selene’s words seemed almost sudden in the tenseness of the moment.

“It doesn’t matter if you don’t find a suitor right now. All that really matters is that you find love. As long as you love as much as you’re loved, you’ll be fine. You’ll be better than fine. You’ll be happy.” Selene finished, content with her dramatic speech.

“How can I be happy being a prisoner? It doesn’t matter if I get married now or in ten years. I will get married. That’s my obligation as a princess.” Marianne spoke lifelessly.

“Our father would never force you to do anything you do not want-“ Selene tried to amend.

“I would never force him to stand up to the entire aristocracy in my defense.” Marianne yielded. She walked towards the farthest wall and grabbed a rake propped against the wall. She began raking out the guinea pigs droppings into a pile. Selene watched her sister, understanding more than Marianne realized she was revealing.

“Our mother bore three daughters to be married to three approved highborn men. I will be married to a stranger and sent away from the only place I have ever lived. I am doomed to be some duke’s kept wife and I’m destined to curse my children with the same fate.” Marianne spoke matter-of-factly and grabbed a rusty shovel and began shoveling the mess into a cart.

“If you don’t want to be married, you don’t have to get married.” Selene offered moving out of her sister’s way.

“I don’t want to be a spinster. I want love, I just don’t want that love to be product of isolation or boredom.” pushing a beaten cart of crap, Marianne turned from her sister and left the stable and conversation.

“You can have that, Marianne. Stop being so dramatic.” Selene yelled after her sister, quickly collected her self and talking off towards the castle to find her father. She knew exactly what she wanted to do for Marianne’s ball.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the next chapter should be up before the end of this week where im finally gonna introduce oc#2 and really take this shit show on the road. someone please beta this my eyes are basically bleeding. also dont forget to leave kudos or comments.


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